89: Epic Evolution

Hum—

A piercing roar exploded simultaneously in Lu Yuan's Sea of Consciousness and in reality.

The resonance core in the war puppet's hand and the ten thousand gu furnace on its chest broke free from the shackles of physics, their gravitational pull transforming into a tangible storm of Law.

The Puppet's massive body trembled violently.

Spiderweb-like cracks appeared on its indestructible alloy shell and spread rapidly.

Overloaded energy spewed wildly along the joints, emitting a metallic wail like a dying beast.

[Warning: Super-high energy level resonance detected between System plugins. Fusion success rate: 19.4%.]

[Fusion will consume a massive amount of karma points as a stabilizer. Estimated consumption: 3580 points.]

[Continue?]

The cold prompt sounded in Lu Yuan's mind.

Every number flashed with deadly temptation, while also concealing the risk of total destruction.

He had just pushed his karma points balance to a new all-time high of just over four thousand through a massive gamble.

This Fusion would almost wipe him out.

Once it failed, this war puppet he relied on for survival, along with the two precious plugins, would be reduced to cosmic dust.

There was not a hint of hesitation on Lu Yuan's pale face.

Risk was, after all, a part of the reward.

His intent was like a cold command, decisive and firm.

"Continue."

[Command confirmed.]

[karma points injection starting...]

Boom!

It was as if boiling oil had been poured onto an out-of-control flame.

The red light on the war puppet's chest and the glow of the diamond-shaped crystal in its hand suddenly flared. The two forces pulled and collided crazily in the Void Realm, forming an extremely unstable energy vortex.

The Puppet let out a metallic wail of unbearable strain, and the armor on one arm was vaporized by the escaping energy.

Lu Yuan's face turned even paler.

He could clearly feel the mental link between himself and the Puppet being torn apart; his Soul felt as if it were placed on a millstone, being ground into powder.

His karma points balance was burning away at a heart-stopping speed.

3000.

2000.

1000.

At the center of the energy vortex, the phantom of the ten thousand gu furnace was forcibly ripped from the Puppet's chest, while the resonance core actively met it.

When the two touched, everything fell silent.

Immediately after came a terrifying implosion capable of swallowing all light and sound.

Lu Yuan groaned, blood seeping from his seven orifices.

Just when he thought everything was about to fail.

[Fusion successful.]

[Plugin 'ten thousand gu furnace' has been upgraded to 'karma furnace'.]

[Plugin 'resonance core' has evolved into 'Ten Thousand Worlds Connector'.]

[Congratulations, based on the characteristics of the new plugins, your Exchange seat authority has met the requirements for promotion.]

[New authority unlocked: Asset-Backed Securitization.]

A series of prompts washed over Lu Yuan's exhausted nerves.

He raised his head and looked forward.

The dust settled.

The war puppet still stood silently, the wounds on its body repairing themselves at an incredible speed.

Its chest was no longer that ancient bronze furnace.

In its place was a miniature nebula composed of countless golden threads, slowly rotating.

That was the karma furnace.

It no longer needed physical Gu as raw material, but could directly refine and smelt the "Karma" of all things in the world, forging them into higher-level Law weapons.

And in the Puppet's hand, it was no longer a diamond-shaped crystal.

But a ball of light constantly changing its form.

[Ten Thousand Worlds Connector].

It could not only connect different System plugins but also connect... different worlds and different rules.

But these gains were nothing compared to the new feature unlocked at the end.

Asset-Backed Securitization.

Lu Yuan's consciousness sank into the Exchange.

A brand new section, radiating a purple-gold light, appeared on his trading interface.

[Asset-Backed Securitization (ABS): Allows the host to package underlying assets with stable, predictable future cash flows into standardized security units and publicly issue them to the market to raise funds.]

Lu Yuan's heart beat heavily and powerfully.

This was no longer speculation betting small for big gains.

This was the ability to create credit.

This was... the first step to becoming the house.

He couldn't wait to try it, but noticed a line of small print on the interface.

[Issuing securities requires binding a 'Value Anchor' with credibility to maintain the security's credit. You currently do not hold any anchor assets that meet the standard.]

The wave of ecstasy receded, and cold thinking regained the high ground.

Yes.

Printing money out of thin air would only lead to inflation and a collapse of credit.

He needed something that all forces in the cultivation world could recognize to endorse the first "security" he issued.

But where could he find such a thing?

Just at this moment, an indifferent figure appeared silently at the other end of the valley.

Heavenly Secret Pavilion, Mysterious Robed Guest.

He seemed to have been there from the beginning, quietly watching Lu Yuan complete everything.

His gaze swept over the brand-new war puppet, and over the aura of Law on Lu Yuan that had not yet fully dissipated; the eyes beneath the hood showed a clear fluctuation for the first time.

"Ye Chen's 'Devour Flow' aims to plunder existing value."

The Mysterious Robed Guest's voice carried an indescribable complexity.

"And you, Lu Yuan, seem to have embarked on a completely different path."

"Creating value."

He raised his hand, and a light screen unfolded before Lu Yuan.

On the screen, the "S" representing the investment rating behind Lu Yuan's name was slowly changing.

Finally, it settled on a striking symbol that had never appeared before.

"S+."

"Congratulations, your growth potential has exceeded the initial estimation model of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion."

"You have proven that your path has more potential than Ye Chen's."

Lu Yuan did not speak, just watched him quietly.

The upgrade in rating must be accompanied by new information, or rather, a new transaction.

"As an S+ level investment target, you have the right to obtain more core intelligence."

The Mysterious Robed Guest waved his hand, and the information on the screen changed.

"The core of the Burial God Abyss does not only contain the Seal of the ancient Demon Venerable."

"There is also something suppressed there."

"Something that would make all Nascent Soul and Soul Transformation cultivators in this world go crazy."

The Mysterious Robed Guest's voice carried a peculiar rhythm that reached straight to the Divine Soul.

"Its name is the 'nine-segment demon suppression key'."

"It is, in itself, a solidified Dao Law, the only proof needed to open a certain ancient treasure vault."

"More importantly..."

The Mysterious Robed Guest's gaze seemed to pierce through the light screen, looking directly at that brand-new functional section in Lu Yuan's Exchange.

"It is the only recognized, top-tier —"

"Value Anchor in the entire Eastern Continent cultivation world for tens of thousands of years."

The Mysterious Robed Guest's figure slowly disappeared into thin air.

"Good Luck, Lu Yuan."

"I hope you will be the one holding it when the final 'Settlement Day' arrives."

Lu Yuan was once again the only one left in the valley.

He looked at the gray [Asset-Backed Securitization] button on his trading interface and recalled the Mysterious Robed Guest's final words.

Compete for the Demon Suppression Key?

No.

That was just conventional thinking.

His gaze slowly moved and landed not far away.

There, Yun Yao was standing respectfully, her eyes filled with awe and fanaticism.

And in a cave further away, Fairy Han Yuexi was still in a coma; her Dao injury was like a time bomb ready to explode at any moment.

A crazy, bold idea, enough to subvert the entire cultivation world's perception, flashed through Lu Yuan's mind like lightning.

Who said an "Anchor" must be an object?

What if...

What if one were to package a living person—her future, her Luck, everything about her—into the cultivation world's first "trust product"?

At the same time, as an additional privilege of the S+ rating, an encrypted file from the Heavenly Secret Pavilion's internal database automatically unlocked before his eyes.

The file's security level was "Top Secret."

And the file's title consisted of only three words.

[the zeroizer].